The Goldfields Giants have implemented a succession plan which could make two-time Most Valuable Player Wayne Creek head coach in as little as three seasons.

Creek on Friday signed on as an assistant coach for the 2010 State Basketball League season after he had been approached to replace two-time championship winning coach Stephen Charlton in the top job.

Giants chairman Graham Crew on Friday also announced the reappointment of Ryan Hough as an assistant coach, while fellow assistant Brendan Brinkworth is still undecided.

But Crew was extremely excited by the prospects of 312-game SBL veteran Creek coming on board.

“We’re looking at some candidates who are some reasonably high-profile options and Wayne feels he could benefit from a year or two as an assistant under that sort of coach,” Crew said.

“We’re trying to look two to three years down the track.”

Crew said the club still had no formal applicants to replace Charlton, who stood down on September 7 after winning two championships in four seasons. Charlton has since been courted by rival SBL franchises Cockburn Cougars and East Perth Eagles.

“We’re still in the hunt for a head coach and we’ve spoken with a few different people,” Crew said.

“As soon as I can name names, I’ll do it. We’ve only had expressions of interest at this stage and no formal applications.

“We’ve spoken with a couple which we think would be a good fit and I’d describe them as 50-50 at the moment.

“We’ve still got to discuss the package which will enable them to come and set up in Kalgoorlie.”

Creek, who retired after the Giants’ breakthrough 2007 championship triumph over Lakeside, turned down the Geraldton Buccaneers’ head coaching job last December because he could not find suitable employment in the harbour city.

Creek is now considered next in line for the Giants’ job, particularly because of his focus on junior development.

“We view all our assistants as potential head coaches at some point in the future,” Crew said.

The Giants are hopeful of retaining the bulk of the 2009 roster, but Crew hinted several changes may be on the cards.

“We’ve been talking to new players and we’ve been looking at different import combinations, depending on which Australian players are going to be around,” Crew said.

“I don’t want to say we’re rebuilding because we’re not going back to the drawing board, but it is a new phase.

“As a club we’ll be looking for more junior development.

“We want to see players like Tane Moran and Garry Sidebottom take the next step.

“We’ve got a succession plan in place now and Wayne’s been working very hard in that area.”

Article by Jarrod Lucas (Kalgoorlie Miner)
Photo from Kalgoorlie Miner